After nearly eight years of serving as a councilman and at times mayor of the city of Montebello, Frank A. Gomez announced during last week’s city council meeting that he will not seek reelection in November.

“I am not and will not be a candidate for reelection this November,” said Gomez when it came time for his council member oral communication.

He said he plans to marry a wonderful woman and move out of the area.

City of Montebello

“My children are getting older and I think it is best that they are exposed to a myriad of experiences,” Gomez explained.

He said his responsibilities as a Cal State Los Angeles chemistry professor would also be increasing in the future and it’s important to make “this next stage in his career a priority.”

Gomez, who currently serves as the chair for the board of trustees at Don Bosco Tec High School, told the crowd he takes great pride in being the only councilmember to have been elected to both the Montebello Unified School District Board and the Montebello City Council.

Gomez said at the meeting that the city is at a “crossroads” and city leaders must choose whether they want to maintain the status quo, or make the difficult decisions that would allow the city to thrive.

The councilman, who would have been up for reelection with Councilmen William M. Molinari and Art Barajas in November, said residents who vote without first becoming educated on the candidates running, “only have themselves to blame for what the city becomes.”

Gomez said city officials need to think outside the box and consider ways to increase revenues. He recommended they look at the long-stalled Montebello Hills housing development project, and consider contracting with the Los Angeles County Fire Dept. for fire services or implementing a utility tax. He said the council needs to implement a “long-term” plan to achieve the city’s “full potential” and avoid becoming like cities to the south.

“I look forward to completing the final months of my term with the same vigor and passion as I on my first day in November 2009,” Gomez said.

By removing himself from the election, the filing period for candidates hoping to win his seat will be extended to August 14, according to the city.

County authorities say they will fire two social workers and two supervisors in response to the death of an 8-year-old Palmdale boy, who was left in his home, despite warnings from multiple sources that he was being abused there, it was announced Tuesday.

Gabriel Fernandez was hospitalized May 22 with BB pellets embedded in his lungs and groin, a cracked skull, broken ribs, burns, bruises and two missing teeth. He died two days later.

Prosecutors allege the youngster’s mother, Pearl Sinthia Fernandez, stood by as her boyfriend, Isauro Aguirre, beat the 8-year-old. The pair has been charged with murder.

Activists and journalists have questioned why county social workers – alerted to the abuse – let the child continue to live in the home.

At Tuesday’s county Board of Supervisors meeting, there were again calls for transparency and accountability from the troubled child welfare agency.

In response, county Supervisor Mike Antonovich said four workers originally placed on desk duty in connection with the case had been fired. He said three other workers had been “placed on reprimand.”

“It is vital that those working in the child protection system remain vigilant to ensure the safety and well-being of those in the county’s care,” Antonovich said.

A DCFS spokeswoman said the four have been issued “letters of intent to discharge.” As public employees, the workers are entitled to written notice and have 10 days to respond and request a hearing. They may also choose to appeal their termination.

According to a statement by Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky: “The department leadership has sent a strong and unmistakable message that the lives of children for whom the county has responsibility are paramount. This decision was not made lightly. It was made only after careful review of all the facts that led to this inevitable action.”

The case of Gabriel Fernandez is one of a number of deaths of children tracked by the county’s Department of Children and Family Services. A blue ribbon commission established to monitor reforms will meet for the first time Thursday.

Police and sheriff’s detectives are investigating the discovery of human remains found Wednesday on a bike path in Montebello.

The remains were found in the 900 block of North Lincoln Avenue, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

The condition of the remains and how long they may have been at the location were not immediately known.

But sheriff’s homicide Lt. Dave Coleman told ABC7 that the skeletal remains that were found do not immediately suggest foul play. He said that detectives would be working with local police departments to see if there were any related missing persons cases.

A young man was shot and killed Monday in a possible gang-related attack in the Boyle Heights area.

Officers were sent to the area of Lanfranco and Indiana streets on a shots-fired call shortly after 10 a.m., police said.

The wounded man, about 20 years of age, was taken to a hospital where he later died, LAPD Officer Gregory Baek said. Authorities withheld his name, pending notification of relatives.

The suspect was described only as a young man in his late teens or early 20s, Baek said.

Police set up a perimeter in the area, and Stevenson Middle School – occupied by administrators but no students – was locked down as a precaution while a search was conducted.

The perimeter and lockdown were lifted about 2 p.m. but the search was continuing for the suspect, Baek said.

Editor’s note: The victim has been identified as 20-year-old Mikey Rodriguez, of Los Angeles, according to coroner’s Assistant Chief Ed Winter. Anyone knowing more about the crime was urged to call police at (877) LAPD-247.

(CNS) – An investigation was underway into a shooting on the westbound Artesia (91) Freeway in Bellflower that left two men wounded, one critically, and two male suspects on the run, according to authorities.

The shooting, which happened around 8:40 p.m. July 25 just west of Bellflower Boulevard, followed some kind of altercation between the occupants of two cars that collided, according to the California Highway Patrol.

One of the victims was shot multiple times and was in critical condition, while the other was hit in the elbow, said California Highway Patrol Officer Cheyenne Quesada. Both were taken to a hospital for treatment, he said.

Two male suspects from one of the cars involved in the crash, a Honda, opened fire on the other, a Chrysler 300, and then abandoned their vehicle, a CHP captain told reporters at the scene. Witnesses said the suspects then got into a silver SUV and left, the captain said.

It was unclear if the suspects knew whoever was in the silver SUV, he said. The Honda was registered to an address in Bell Gardens, according to reports from the scene.

A SigAlert was declared for the westbound Artesia Freeway, where all lanes were closed, Quesada said.

The transition roads from the northbound and southbound San Gabriel River (605) Freeway to the westbound Artesia Freeway were also closed, he said. The closures, which caused a massive traffic backup, were lifted around 12:45 a.m.

The coroner’s office this week released the name of a man fatally wounded during a heated argument with another man in front of his Boyle Heights residence.

The victim was identified as Jose Chavez, 42, said coroner’s Investigator Kristy McCracken.

The victim pulled up in front of his residence in the 2000 block of Sheridan Street at around 10:40 p.m. on July 22, according to Sgt. Karen Stanwix of the Los Angeles Police Department’s Hollenbeck Station.

A passenger train line that was originally unwanted by regional transportation planners but now carries more than 1 million passengers a month was celebrated last week on its 10th anniversary.

The Metro Gold Line, from Pasadena to Union Station turned 10 years old last week. (EGP Archive)

The Gold Line began operating July 26, 2003, on its first section, the old Santa Fe rail right-of-way between Union Station in Los Angeles and downtown Pasadena. From Union Station it takes an elevated rail to Chinatown before returning to street level for stops at stations in northeast L.A., including in Lincoln Heights, the Southwest Museum in Mount Washington, and in Highland Park, and then continues on, making six stops in Pasadena. The line was later extended east along the Foothill (210) Freeway, and a southern leg was added southeast from Union Station across Boyle Heights to East Los Angeles.

Last Thursday, more than 100 elected officials and community members gathered at the Del Mar Station in Pasadena to celebrate.

Originally rebuffed by Metro directors, Pasadena-area politicians turned to a change in state law authored by then-Sen. Adam Schiff and wrested the project away from Metro, setting up a new agency: the Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension Construction Authority. That agency built the line on time and on budget.

Pasadena Mayor Bill Bogaard hailed the Gold Line for causing a renaissance in city land use.

“It has improved the fabric of our city and changed how our residents, workers and visitors travel every day,” he said in prepared remarks.

More than $1 billion in transit-oriented development was sparked by the train, he said, including “nearly 2,300 new residential units; 750,000 square feet of newly constructed retail and commercial space; as well as numerous other projects that either renovated or adaptively reused our historic buildings.”

The Construction Authority is building a $2 billion extension that will connect Pasadena to Montclair in two construction segments. The first segment, Pasadena to Azusa, was funded by Los Angeles County’s Measure R and is underway.

Funding is being sought to extend the Gold Line into San Bernardino County, possibly as far as Ontario International Airport. Southeast of Los Angeles, Metro is considering extending the southern leg to Montebello, Whittier or both.

The train’s two legs will be connected to the Blue and Expo lines via a “Regional Connector” tunnel now being built under downtown Los Angeles and scheduled to open in 2020.

In 1984, National Night Out (“America’s Night Out Against Crime”) was started as a way to promote community and police partnerships, neighborhood camaraderie, crime prevention activities, and to let criminals know neighborhoods are organized and fighting back, according to the National Association of Town Watch (NATW), the non-profit that founded the event.

National Night Out has been observed every first Tuesday of August since 1984, and will turn 30 next year.

Among the nation-wide activities promoted as part of the event is a “lights on” campaign that encourages residents to leave their front porch light on as a symbolic vigil, according to the NATW website. The “lights on” practice is meant to serve as reminder that the community is watching, not hiding in fear in the dark.

Communities throughout Los Angeles County will mark the annual “take back the streets” from crime with a variety of celebrations, ranging from marches to block parties to carnivals and other community gatherings. Law enforcement agencies will participate in the activities along side local residents.

Saturday, August 3

9am—Bell Gardens National Night Out At Veterans Park During Celebrate Bell Gardens Event. Residents are invited by police, fire, and city staff to “Touch-a-Truck”, enjoy a pancake breakfast and watch a salsa cook-off. A National Night Out booth will offer safety tips throughout the weekend. Veterans Park is located at 6662 Loveland Street. For more information call (562) 806-7650.

Times and locations vary—City of Commerce Neighborhoods will hold block parties hosted by Neighborhood Watch Captains. Commerce residents will be contacted by their Block Captains regarding starting time and locations. For more information, contact Laura Tilley at (323) 887-4460 ext 2870.

6-8pm— Monterey Park Police Department Hosts National Night Out Safety Event at City Hall. Participate in interactive safety exhibits for the kids; displays of Police Department and specialized bureau equipment, such as our Special Response Team, K9 Team, and Traffic Bureau; raffles; and much more. City Hall is located at 320 W. Newark Ave. For more information contact the Monterey Park Police Department’s Community Relations Bureau at (626) 307-1215.

6pm to 8pm—Hollenbeck’s 30th Annual National Night Out in Boyle Heights: 2111 E. First Street, Los Angeles, CA 90033. Event will include free entertainment, food and fun for the entire family. It is being presented by the Los Angeles Police Department, Hollenbeck Community Police Advisory Board, Councilmen Jose Huizar (CD-14) and Gil Cedillo (CD-1). For more information, call the Hollenbeck Police Community Relations Office at (323) 342-4130

6pm to 9pm—El Sereno National Night Out at the Council District 14 Constituent Services Center, 4530 Mercury Avenue, Los Angeles, 90032. Police, Fire, City staff, community groups, and local businesses will be on hand to provide crime prevention and problem solving information. There will be free hot dogs and summer time treats.

6pm to 8pm—Eagle Rock National Night Out at the Eagle Rock Plaza, upper parking lot next to Target. This annual event is meant for Northeast LA residents, not just residents of Eagle Rock. The celebration will include a resource fair, free food, entertainment, games, and a moon bounce. Target is located at 2626 Colorado Blvd., L.A. For more information call (323) 344-5712.